How to apply for the English-language class in basic education

In Lappeenranta, instruction in English is organised at Kesämäen koulu comprehensive school. You can apply for a school place for your child in an English-language class at the same time as you enrol your child in the first grade at school in Wilma. If your family moves to Lappeenranta at a later stage, it is possible to apply for the English-language class in accordance with section 4 of the selection criteria.

Instruction in English at Kesämäen koulu is organised as so-called extensive bilingual education, in which both Finnish and English are used in instruction. The aim of the English-language classes is to teach pupils the syllabus of grades 1–6 in basic education in accordance with the curriculum while giving them the opportunity to study English from the first grade onwards. The aim is for the pupils to achieve a level in English where instruction can be provided mainly in English in the fifth or sixth grade.

Requirements

Pupils are selected for the English-language class according to the following criteria in the following order:

1. The pupil’s place of residence is Lappeenranta. If there is room in the group to be formed, pupils from other municipalities can also be admitted to the English-language class as long as they meet the other selection criteria.
2. The weighted total score of the Finnish language proficiency test, class test and activity test for the new pupil, which is at least the minimum score required for admission to the class.
3. A draw among those new pupils who receive the same score in the tests and at least the minimum score required for admission to the class.
4. If English is the home language of the pupil and the mother tongue of the guardian, the pupil has moved from abroad and received instruction in English or the pupil has moved from elsewhere in Finland and has been in an English-language class, the principal may, on the basis of an overall assessment, admit the pupil to the English class. In the overall assessment, the principal must take into account the pupil’s learning abilities and the overall situation of the class.

The pupils of the English-language class will move on to the seventh grade in the English-language class at Kesämäen koulu.

Instructions

For more information on applying for the English-language class, please contact the vice principal or principal of Kesämäen koulu.

Payment information

The service is free of charge.

The English-language classes are part of the Education Department of the City of Lappeenranta, i.e. studying is free of charge. The English-language class is a secondary school place. The city does not arrange transport to a secondary school. The prerequisite for admission to the English-language class is that the guardian takes care of transporting the pupil and the related costs.